The City of Cape Town’s Water and Sanitation Directorate is calling on everyone who lives, works or plays in Cape Town to be water wise at all times, especially this summer and during prolonged high stages of load-shedding. The City has proactively set a maximum limit for our collective water use to be no more than 850 million litres per day. See how you too can be water wise and help Cape Town stay below the limit. Read more below:

The proactive maximum limit was set to help maintain the supply so we can keep our dams and reservoirs fuller for longer, and navigate the impact of prolonged high stages of load-shedding, which is affecting water supply operation

‘Over summer, the collective water usage has increased significantly. We are currently using 969 million litres of water per day (MLD), which is 119MLD above the required target of 850MLD, and dam levels are dropping about 2,2% a week. We need all hands-on-deck to reduce this current rate of water use, to stay below the limit.

‘The City is providing water saving tips and urging residents to take action. Let’s all do our part by using water wisely, fixing leaks and following permanent water-saving regulations. This will help reduce the impact of water and sanitation disruptions, and avoid restrictions. I specifically want to ask residents to be aware of and reduce their outdoor water use such as watering gardens, refilling or topping up pools and hosing-down hard surfaces, which can contribute the most to their domestic water use at this time of year.

‘Using less water will help deal with operational challenges, notably due to heavy load-shedding and summer weather conditions, which are impacting our water treatment plants and ability to convey water to reservoirs and areas across Cape Town, especially to high-lying areas where the water has to be pumped.

‘While City teams are monitoring the water supply operations and usage very closely and doing all they can to maintain supply, we also need our residents to help us during this time by using less water.

‘Cape Town has been enjoying hot weather over the festive season so residents are reminded of the restrictions related to pools, outdoor water use such as gardening, vehicle cleaning and other aspects, that are in place at all times, to help save water because we are in a water-scarce region,’ said Councillor Siseko Mbandezi, the City’s Acting Mayoral Committee Member for Water and Sanitation.

TOP 10 WAYS TO BE WATER WISE THIS SUMMER

INDOORS:

1. Don’t flush in a rush. Only flush when necessary and do not use your toilet as a dustbin. New or replaced toilet cisterns may not exceed six litres for each flush.

2. Take short, stop-start showers or small baths. The maximum flow rate of new and replaced showerheads may not exceed seven litres.

3. Wash more with less, for laundry and dishes. Only wash clothes and dishes (pots, cups etc) when really needed. Wait for a full load before using washing machines and dishwashers. Hand washing and spot-cleaning can use less water.

4. Turn off taps when not using the flow. E.g. Use a cup for shaving and brushing your teeth.

OUTDOORS:

5. Close the hose when washing the car. Hosepipes for washing vehicles must be fitted with a controlling device like a spray nozzle or automatic self-closing device. Stop-start your spray as you need it, and don’t spray more than you need. Alternatively, bucket-wash your car or vehicle.

Water gardens wisely.

6. Stop-start and slow your spray. Use nozzle restrictor or closing device.

7. Beat the heat loss. Only water before 09:00 or after 18:00 to avoid evaporation losses.

8. Water down to the roots directly where possible.

9. Keep summer fun water wise. Supervise careful use of water for children’s play, and cooling in hot summer months. E.g. Use a wet cloth to cool down hot skin, and avoid wasteful spraying of water.

10. Keep the pool full for longer with a cover. Built-in and fold-away pools must be covered to avoid evaporation when not in use. Recycle the backwash, and top up with rainwater or alternative water where possible.

Regulations about water use in the City’s Water By-law are in place at all times and following these will go a long way towards achieving the target of 850MLD collective use.

For more useful water saving guides and information about the permanent water use regulations in place, visit www.capetown.gov.za/savewater

Source: City Of Cape Town